Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Spectacle Lynching


 http://www.tampabay.com/features/humaninterest/article1197360.ece

In our discussion of the Jim Crow South, we talked about the both the direct and indirect effects of the racial hatred that existed throughout the South. Although some African Americans living in the South would be able to make it through their whole life without being attacked or having a family member killed, we recognize that the effect of the terrorism by whites was still very impactful on all African Americans.  One of the most impactful forms of terrorism was the relatively newly conceived idea of what would be called a spectacle lynching. These lynchings would be very public, held in front of crowds, and for the direct purpose of not only killing the person set to be lynched, but to inspire fear in the rest of the black community. As was the point of a lynching, the impact of the act would be felt by more than the one person who was lynched.
            These widespread effects was also not limited by time. The link above is to an article that tells the story of Allie Mae Neal and her father Claude Neal who was the victim of a brutal spectacle lynching in 1934. In the article, Allie Mae Neal, speaking in 2011 speaks about how the traumatic event still impacts her and her family. That is almost 80 years after the event and still it has a strong emotional impact that affects her relationships with others and particularly her cousin as she talks about in the article. What is amazing about this is that Americans have a strong tendency to put the distant and ugly past of America in the past, even events like the civil rights movement have been glossed over as a triumphant time in American history in many respects. But this story, almost 80 years old, while Americans may choose not to reflect on it, are still, today having a very real and powerful impact on American society. Moreover, consider that impact in relation to the impact that a spectacle lynching would have had on the people living in the town where it took place. As was brought up in class, not every African American living in the South was a victim of violence and may have even lived a pretty good life. However, when you consider the a lynching that took place 80 years ago is still effecting people and communities today, I do not think it is a stretch to say that every African American during reconstruction was a victim of spectacle lynching because all whether affected directly or indirectly were forced to confront the fear and emotional aspects of the practice.
            Additionally, as the author of the article alludes to I think. The lasting effects lynching is societal problem, not just a black problem. When the author makes the point that the parts of the white community that know the story keep it secret, points to another troubling effect on society. Meaning that these past events are still important factors in race relations as there is a dishonest and disingenuous public discourse on the surface that is being ignored by a community, and thus making it impossible really for communities to move past, past events. The effects of reconstruction, the post slavery south and the practices that took place then were enormously impactful than, and remain so today although they are usually less talked about.

1 comment:

  1. I agree that the act of spectacle lynching not only affects the families of those being lynched but but also the rest of the African American society during Reconstruction. The act of public lynching is an act designed to dehumanize African Americans and cause humiliation. It seems to me that the white community perhaps brushes over the lynching they saw in say, the town square last week due to both fear of white society and embarrassment. I, too, agree that by keeping these acts a secret, there is a lack of genuine public discourse on race relations during the early 20th century. What is needed then, is a push for the truth by using a combination of both white and black perspective of that time. Most likely, these two accounts will be utterly different. However, when reading their stories, it is important to take into account each person's social context and judge their stories based on that. Only then, will the truth come out and honest discourse will occur.

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